Grace Baptist Church

     As we begin the fourteenth week of the tornado recovery I am reminded to thank all the many voluntreers who have come our way. What has been accomplished could not have happened except for the many people from all over America who have come to serve our great God by serving the people of joplin, Missouri through Grace Baptist Church. You have unselfishly given of your time and means to help the people of Joplin to recover from the great tragedy thay have experienced and you have done so with a wonderful Christian spirit that has made a great impact in our community. To the many people of our own membership who have tirelessly given of their time and means as well I want to say "Thank You." The cards and letters from the people of Joplin are encouraging and show how grateful they are of your ministry to them. I love you all in Christ for your unconditional love to the people of Joplin. May God bless you all.

We had sixty-one campers this past week who attended the second week of the Ozark Baptist Encampment (OBE). We had many others who came by to visit during the week. There were a total of about 750 campers over the two weeks and over 50 professions of faith, with many other decisions. God truly blessed our encampment once again. There were eight professions of faith from our church. Our first Sunday back, we had three people come forward to be baptized and we know of others who plan to come forward over the next two weeks. Our tornado relief is still going strong. I want to thank all our members and the many volunteers who have helped in this ministry as well. May we always let God use us as He desires, and to Him be the glory for all that is accomplished.

The week of July 25-29 we will be traveling to Grand Lake for our annual summer encampment. what a great time we have there. Pray for all our campers and for the salvation of many souls this week and next during the two weeks of the Ozark Baptist Encampment. This is always a very exciting week for us here at Grace Baptist Church.

We are continuing our relief efforts for the city of Joplin. To date God has allowed us to feed almost 25,000 meals, complete over 1800 projects, and serve over 4000 people through our trailer distribution. We have built and distributed several sheds and are continuing to do so at a cost of $650 each. If you would like to donate to this cause, please send a check to the Church for the Relief Fund, designated for a shed. Continue to pray for the people of Joplin and for our volunteers who are serving this city not only with their physical needs, but also their emotional and spiritual needs as well.

Today we celebrate the 135th birthday of what I believe to be the greatest nation in the history of the world; with the possible exception of Israel, God's chosen people. As I reflect on the history of this great nation and its Christian foundation and history, and having been involved in a great recovery effort from the Joplin tornado with people from all over America and resources arriving almost daily from sources we had no previous contact with, I realize how great this nation really is. Happy Birthday America. Thank you all who have come, worked and provided the much needed items for the displaced people of Joplin and those who needed help to recover. We still need bleach, paper towels, nonperishable foods and cleaning supplies. Many people are now getting out of the hospital or getting into a new house and they are needing everything to get set up again. Keep praying for our ministry and for the people of Joplin. May God bless you and may God bless America.

Having met with the city of Joplin and the governor of our state today we are learning that the recovery efforts are going very well. However 7000 homes and over 200 businesses were destroyed and over 14000 people have been displaced with many more who are suffering with moderate to severe damage to their homes. This will take a long time to overcome. However, Joplin will survive and Joplin will rebuild. Pray that we will be able to meet not only the physical needs of the people, but also their emotional and especially their spiritual needs. We have a big task ahead, but we have a great big God that can do it. Praise His name.

I truly believe God can do anything! However, when He does it, I am still amazed. He not only provides, but goes way beyond our expectations. With the help of hundreds of people who have come and worked, given donations of food, water, clothing, household items, etc. and even money, God is accomplishing a true miracle in Joplin, Missouri. Please continue to pray with us that Joplin, who has suffered the worst tornado disaster in history ( 1/3 of the city of 50,000 leveled and much more damaged), will not be forgotten. Your prayers are most valuable. Your help is appreciated. We will want to express our appreciation to each of you when things slow down enough to do so. Just be assured until then, We appreciate all you have done and are doing and we love you very much. May God bless you and your ministries as well.

We still need your help

 JOPLIN RELIEF EFFORTS NEEDS THE FOLLOWING:

 Thank you so very much for your prayers and concern for the people of Joplin, Missouri!  You can help in any of the following ways:

Cash

 We need money to buy the things that are not donated.  For example, we are feeding 5,000 per week and it costs us more than $1,000 a day to purchase meat and other items not donated just to feed the people.  So even if you collect items for us, would you please consider an offering?

Collect and bring to Joplin any of the following items:

Cleaning supplies

 Brooms, dust pans, mops, Pine Sol or other floor cleaners, bathroom and kitchen cleaners, glass cleaner, Lysol spray, air fresheners, carpet freshener, etc.

Gift cards

 We need $10.00 gift cards to Wal Mart to give to people for shopping and gasoline.

Clothing

 We are not receiving any more clothing.  However, we do need new children’s, men’s, and ladies’ underwear and socks.

 Food

 We do not need water.  However, people are getting tired of drinking water so we could use Gatorade, juice, juice boxes, soda of all flavors.  We also need canned goods and non-perishable food items.

Paper Products

 Paper towels, tissues, paper plates, plastic knives, forks, and spoons, paper or plastic cups, zip-lock sandwich bags, toilet paper, moving boxes, packing tape, contractor trash bags, and diapers of all sizes. This will be an ongoing need for some time.

Misc. needs

 Rakes, all sizes of batteries, coolers, Rubbermaid plastic totes, toasters,  manual can openers, laundry detergent, Clorox 2, fabric softener, and dryer sheets. We are really needing the plastic totes. this has been good for those who been displaced as some are actually living out of these totes.

 Personal Hygiene items (the smaller the bottles the better)

 Bar soap, liquid soap, shampoo, deodorant, mouth wash, toothpaste, tooth brushes, shaving cream, disposable razors, hair gel, hair spray, combs, brushes, hand held mirrors, etc.

 WORK CREWS

 We need work crews of men, women, and students now and in the many months to come.  We are preparing food, serving meals, handing out clothing, food items, and personal hygiene items, helping people move their belongings, raking yards, unloading trailers, taking requested items to people’s houses, repeatedly surveying the 500+ houses in our “Jerusalem” for needs, and other similar duties.  To register a work crew, please visit our welcome page to register which will tell us who’s coming, how many are coming, and when you are coming. This will allow us to use you more effectively.

HOUSING

 Those coming to work for multiple days, will be provided housing @ First Baptist Church of Galena, located 6 miles from the work site.  The church provides a new mattress to sleep on, showers, snacks, continental breakfast, laundry service, towels, and snacks.  The noon meal is provided by Grace Baptist Church and there are snack items and fruit that one could find to eat for supper.  To arrange for housing contact Pastor Jeff Swart @ jeffswart@jeffswart.com or 417.499.0175.

 If you are bringing supplies, would you please contact Jesse Hales @ 417- 438 -1855

DIRECTIONS

To get to Grace Baptist Church, take exit 6 off I44 which is our Main Street. Go north to 32nd street which will bethe fist major intersection you come to. Turn left two blocks and you will see the church. The address is 3130 S. Wall, Joplin, MO 64804. You may call 417-438-7992 or 417-438-1855 for further information.

To get to Firsdt Baptist for housing, you take the last exit before the Oklahoma Will Rogers Turnpike (or the first exit after the turnpike depending from which direction you are coming), and go north to Galena on KS Hwy 26. This will be main street in Galena. Turn right onto 7th street and after you have passed the high school a little ways, you will see First Baptist just before leaving town. You may call Jeff Swart at 417-499-0175 for further information.

 Thank you again for caring!

 Fred Vogel -  Sr. Pastor

Grace Baptist Church - 3130 S Wall - Joplin, MO 64804

vogelministries@yahoo.com

417- 438 -7992 

This Blog was set up for Bro. Fred  to pen his thoughts..    ~ Thank you for all you do,  Love Grace Baptist Church..